Test for Malingering Creating Controversy in the Courtroom

The Fake Bad Scale, developed by psychologists to weed out so-called malingerers in personal injury suits, has recently earned credibility, and greater popularity in the court room, with an endorsement from the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Fake Bad Scale has now been used in hundreds of cases to prove that supposed victims are faking their injuries to win damages in court. Some psychologists and plaintiff’s lawyers have voiced opposition to the test, arguing that the test criteria label nearly everyone a malingerer, rendering it a tool of insurance companies. Others have compared the use of the new test in court to the FBI’s now discredited bullet lead analysis, arguing that the test results should not be used as a major factor in deciding a case.